Method, apparatus, medium, and device for vehicle automatic navigation control

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure discloses a method, apparatus, medium, and device for vehicle automatic navigation control. With the solutions according to the embodiments of the present disclosure, in a vehicle automatic navigation control process, a first vehicle-mounted server can receive automatic navigation information corresponding to another vehicle, and determine a vehicle-mounted server identifier of a vehicle to form a platoon with a vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located based on automatic navigation information corresponding to the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located, and transmit a platooning request to a second vehicle-mounted server corresponding to the determined vehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle to form the platoon, such that the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located can form the platoon with another vehicle, and the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located can be controlled to move as a following vehicle of the other vehicle.

PRIORITY CLAIM

The present disclosure claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No.202010213783.7, titled “METHOD, APPARATUS, MEDIUM, AND DEVICE FORVEHICLE AUTOMATIC NAVIGATION CONTROL”, filed on Mar. 24, 2020, thecontent of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to Internet of Vehicles technology, andmore particularly, to a method, apparatus, medium, and device forvehicle automatic navigation control.

BACKGROUND

Vehicles based on automatic navigation technology, when having samestarting point and destination, often form a platoon at the startingpoint. The platoon can be understood as a straight line of one vehicleafter another, and can then automatically navigate, in the form of aplatoon, from the starting point to the destination where the platoon isdisbanded.

When vehicles automatically navigate in the form of a platoon, the airresistance experienced by vehicles in the platoon that are blocked byother vehicles can be reduced, and thus the vehicles experiencingreduced air resistance can have lower fuel consumption.

However, with different starting points and/or destinations, vehicles(or platoons) will move separately even if they have an overlappingsegment of driving route, and thus the air resistance experienced by thevehicles cannot be effectively reduced, resulting in suboptimal fuelsaving effects for the vehicles.

SUMMARY

The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method, apparatus,medium, and device for vehicle automatic navigation control, capable ofsolving the problem associated with suboptimal fuel saving effects forvehicles and allowing expansion of a platoon to satisfy variousplatooning requirements of the platoon.

A method for vehicle automatic navigation control is provided at avehicle-mounted server requesting to form a platoon according to thepresent disclosure. The method includes: receiving, by a firstvehicle-mounted server, at least one piece of automatic navigationinformation each containing a navigation route, a destination, a currentlocation, and a vehicle-mounted server identifier of a correspondingvehicle; determining, based on automatic navigation informationcorresponding to a vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated and the at least one piece of automatic navigation information,a vehicle-mounted server identifier of a vehicle to form a platoon withthe vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located, aninformation overlapping degree between automatic navigation informationof the vehicle to form the platoon and the automatic navigationinformation corresponding to the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located meeting a predefined requirement; transmitting aplatooning request to a second vehicle-mounted server corresponding tothe determined vehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle to formthe platoon, the platooning request carrying a vehicle-mounted serveridentifier corresponding to the first vehicle-mounted server; receivinga platooning response containing location information and drivinginformation, the location information and driving information being fedback from the second vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooningrequest based on the vehicle-mounted server identifier carried in theplatooning request in accordance with a predetermined time length, thedriving information containing steering wheel angle information,throttle control amount information, and brake control amountinformation; and controlling, in accordance with the platooning responsereceived each time, the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located to move as a following vehicle of the vehicle where thesecond vehicle-mounted server is located. The vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located has one or more following vehicles,and/or the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server is locatedhas one or more following vehicles.

A method for vehicle automatic navigation control is provided at avehicle-mounted server accepting a request to form a platoon accordingto the present disclosure. The method includes: receiving, by a secondvehicle-mounted server, a platooning request carrying a vehicle-mountedserver identifier corresponding to a first vehicle-mounted server, theplatooning request being transmitted by the first vehicle-mountedserver, after receiving at least one piece of automatic navigationinformation each containing a navigation route, a destination, a currentlocation, and a vehicle-mounted server identifier of a correspondingvehicle, and determining, based on automatic navigation informationcorresponding to a vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated and the at least one piece of automatic navigation information,a vehicle-mounted server identifier of a vehicle to form a platoon withthe vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located, aninformation overlapping degree between automatic navigation informationof the vehicle to form the platoon and the automatic navigationinformation corresponding to the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located meeting a predefined requirement, to the secondvehicle-mounted server corresponding to the determined vehicle-mountedserver identifier of the vehicle to form the platoon; determiningwhether to agree to form the platoon based on the platooning request;and transmitting, when it is determined to agree to form the platoon,location information and driving information of the vehicle where thesecond vehicle-mounted server is located to the first vehicle-mountedserver transmitting the platooning request based on the vehicle-mountedserver identifier carried in the platooning request in accordance with apredetermined time length, the driving information containing steeringwheel angle information, throttle control amount information, and brakecontrol amount information. The vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located has one or more following vehicles, and/or the vehiclewhere the second vehicle-mounted server is located has one or morefollowing vehicles.

An apparatus for vehicle automatic navigation control is provided at avehicle-mounted server requesting to form a platoon according to thepresent disclosure. The apparatus includes: a receiving moduleconfigured to receive at least one piece of automatic navigationinformation each containing a navigation route, a destination, a currentlocation, and a vehicle-mounted server identifier of a correspondingvehicle, and receive a platooning response containing locationinformation and driving information, the location information anddriving information being fed back from a second vehicle-mounted serverreceiving a platooning request based on a vehicle-mounted serveridentifier carried in the platooning request in accordance with apredetermined time length, the driving information containing steeringwheel angle information, throttle control amount information, and brakecontrol amount information; a determining module configured todetermine, based on automatic navigation information corresponding to avehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located and the atleast one piece of automatic navigation information, a vehicle-mountedserver identifier of a vehicle to form a platoon with the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located, an information overlappingdegree between automatic navigation information of the vehicle to formthe platoon and the automatic navigation information corresponding tothe vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located meeting apredefined requirement; a transmitting module configured to transmit theplatooning request to the second vehicle-mounted server corresponding tothe determined vehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle to formthe platoon, the platooning request carrying the vehicle-mounted serveridentifier corresponding to the first vehicle-mounted server; and acontrol module configured to control, in accordance with the platooningresponse received each time, the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located to move as a following vehicle of the vehicle wherethe second vehicle-mounted server is located. The vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located has one or more followingvehicles, and/or the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server islocated has one or more following vehicles.

An apparatus for vehicle automatic navigation control is provided at avehicle-mounted server accepting a request to form a platoon accordingto the present disclosure. The apparatus includes: a receiving moduleconfigured to receive, by a second vehicle-mounted server, a platooningrequest carrying a vehicle-mounted server identifier corresponding to afirst vehicle-mounted server, the platooning request being transmittedby the first vehicle-mounted server, after receiving at least one pieceof automatic navigation information each containing a navigation route,a destination, a current location, and a vehicle-mounted serveridentifier of a corresponding vehicle, and determining, based onautomatic navigation information corresponding to a vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located and the at least one piece ofautomatic navigation information, a vehicle-mounted server identifier ofa vehicle to form a platoon with the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located, an information overlapping degreebetween automatic navigation information of the vehicle to form theplatoon and the automatic navigation information corresponding to thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located meeting apredefined requirement, to the second vehicle-mounted servercorresponding to the determined vehicle-mounted server identifier of thevehicle to form the platoon; a determining module configured todetermine whether to agree to form the platoon based on the platooningrequest; and a transmitting module configured to transmit, when it isdetermined to agree to form the platoon, location information anddriving information of the vehicle where the second vehicle-mountedserver is located to the first vehicle-mounted server transmitting theplatooning request based on the vehicle-mounted server identifiercarried in the platooning request in accordance with a predeterminedtime length, the driving information containing steering wheel angleinformation, throttle control amount information, and brake controlamount information. The vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located has one or more following vehicles, and/or the vehicle wherethe second vehicle-mounted server is located has one or more followingvehicles.

A non-volatile computer storage medium is also provided according to thepresent disclosure. The non-volatile computer storage medium stores anexecutable program which, when executed by a processor, implements themethod described above at a vehicle-mounted server requesting to form aplatoon.

A device for vehicle automatic navigation control is also providedaccording to the present disclosure. The apparatus includes a processor,a communication interface, a memory, and a communication bus. Theprocessor, the communication interface, and the memory communicate witheach other via the communication bus. The memory is configured to storea computer program, and the processor is configured to implement, whenexecuting the program stored on the memory, the method described aboveat a vehicle-mounted server requesting to form a platoon.

A non-volatile computer storage medium is also provided according to thepresent disclosure. The non-volatile computer storage medium stores anexecutable program which, when executed by a processor, implements themethod described above at a vehicle-mounted server accepting a requestto form a platoon.

A device for vehicle automatic navigation control is also providedaccording to the present disclosure. The apparatus includes a processor,a communication interface, a memory, and a communication bus. Theprocessor, the communication interface, and the memory communicate witheach other via the communication bus. The memory is configured to storea computer program, and the processor is configured to implement, whenexecuting the program stored on the memory, the method described aboveat a vehicle-mounted server accepting a request to form a platoon.

With the solutions according to the embodiments of the presentdisclosure, in a vehicle automatic navigation control process, a firstvehicle-mounted server can receive automatic navigation informationcorresponding to another vehicle, and determine, from the receivedautomatic navigation information, a vehicle-mounted server identifier ofa vehicle to form a platoon with a vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located based on automatic navigationinformation corresponding to the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located, and transmit a platooning request to a secondvehicle-mounted server corresponding to the determined vehicle-mountedserver identifier of the vehicle to form the platoon, such that thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located can form theplatoon with another vehicle, and the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located can be controlled to move as afollowing vehicle of the other vehicle, thereby effectively reducing airresistance and reducing fuel consumption of the vehicle.

Additional features and advantages of the present disclosure will be setforth in the following description, or become apparent at least in partfrom the following description, or can be learned from practicing of thepresent disclosure. The objects and other advantages of the presentdisclosure can be achieved and obtained from structures specificallydescribed in the description, claims, and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to describe the technical solutions according to theembodiments of the present disclosure or the prior art more clearly,figures used in description of the embodiments or the prior art will beintroduced briefly below. Obviously, the figures described below onlyillustrate some embodiments of the present disclosure, and other figurescan be obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art based on thesedrawings without any inventive efforts.

FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating a method for vehicle automaticnavigation control according to Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a method for vehicle automaticnavigation control according to Embodiment 2 of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a location relationship in aplatoon according to Embodiment 3 of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a structure of an apparatus forvehicle automatic navigation control according to Embodiment 4 of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a structure of an apparatus forvehicle automatic navigation control according to Embodiment 5 of thepresent disclosure; and

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a structure of a device forvehicle automatic navigation control according to Embodiment 6 of thepresent disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

In the following, the solutions according to the embodiments of thepresent disclosure will be described clearly and completely withreference to the figures. Obviously, the embodiments described below areonly some, rather than all, of the embodiments of the presentdisclosure. All other embodiments that can be obtained by those skilledin the art based on the embodiments described in the present disclosurewithout any inventive efforts are to be encompassed by the scope of thepresent disclosure.

It is to be noted that a vehicle moving in the front of a platoon can bereferred to as a leading vehicle, and other vehicles can be referred toas following vehicles. The leading vehicle automatically navigatesaccording to a predetermined navigation route, and a vehicle-mountedserver on the leading vehicle can transmit location information anddriving information (including, but not limited to, steering wheel angleinformation, throttle control amount information, and brake controlamount information) of the vehicle where it is located to thevehicle-mounted server of each following vehicle in accordance with apredetermined time length, such that each following vehicle can followthe movement of the leading vehicle. Every time the location informationand the driving information are received, the vehicle-mounted server oneach following vehicle can use a location corresponding to the receivedlocation information as a navigation target location, and when itreaches the navigation target location, control the vehicle to moveaccording to the received driving information, so as to achieveautomatic navigation of the platoon.

It is to be noted that when forming a platoon at a starting point, thevehicle-mounted server on the leading vehicle can randomly set an order(which can be denoted as an ID) in which each following vehicle followsthe leading vehicle.

In order to maintain the distance between vehicles in the platoon, thevehicle-mounted server on the leading vehicle can at least transmit,according to the order in which each following vehicle follows theleading vehicle, to the vehicle-mounted server of that following vehiclea vehicle-mounted server identifier of a following vehicle immediatelyfollowing it. The vehicle-mounted server on the leading vehicle or eachfollowing vehicle can transmit location information to thevehicle-mounted server on the following vehicle immediately following itbased on the corresponding vehicle-mounted server identifier inaccordance with a specified time length.

The vehicle-mounted server on each following vehicle can determine adistance to the vehicle (leading or following vehicle) it immediatelyfollows based on the obtained location information of the vehicle itimmediately follows and its own location information, and report thedetermined distance to the leading vehicle, such that the leadingvehicle can control the speed of each following vehicle based on thereceived distances, thereby maintaining the distance between vehicles inthe platoon.

When vehicles automatically navigate in the form of a platoon, the airresistance experienced by vehicles in the platoon that are blocked byother vehicles can be reduced, and thus the vehicles experiencingreduced air resistance can have lower fuel consumption.

However, with different starting points and/or destinations, vehicles(or platoons) will move separately even if they have an overlappingsegment of driving route, and thus the air resistance experienced by thevehicles cannot be effectively reduced, resulting in suboptimal fuelsaving effects for the vehicles.

The inventors of the present disclosure found that, even if the startingpoints and/or destinations of the vehicles (or platoons) are different,the vehicles (or platoons) can also form a platoon and move together, soas to reduce air resistance as much as possible and reduce fuelconsumption.

For example, even if the starting points and/or destinations of thevehicles (or platoons) are different, their navigation routes maypartially overlap. On the overlapping navigation routes, the vehicles(or platoons) can also form a platoon and move together, so as to reduceair resistance as much as possible and reduce fuel consumption.

As another example, even if the selected navigation routes are differentand thus the navigation routes do not overlap, given the samedestination, the vehicles (or platoons) can also form a platoon and moveto the same destination according to the same navigation route, so as toreduce air resistance as much as possible and reduce fuel consumption.

Therefore, the present disclosure provides a solution for dynamicallyforming vehicles (or platoons) into a platoon in a process of automaticnavigation, so as to achieve vehicle automatic navigation control. Withthis scheme of vehicle automatic navigation control, expansion of aplatoon of autonomous vehicles can also be achieved. For example, onevehicle may form a platoon with another vehicle or join a platoon ofvehicles, a platoon of vehicles may follow one vehicle to form aplatoon, or a platoon of vehicles may join another platoon of vehicles.

In the following, the present disclosure will be described in furtherdetail with reference to the figures, such that the objects, solutions,and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent.Obviously, the embodiments described below are only some, rather thanall, of the embodiments of the present disclosure. Starting from theembodiments of the present disclosure, those skilled in the art canobtain other embodiments without applying any inventive skills and allthese embodiments are to be encompassed by the scope of the presentdisclosure.

It is to be noted that the phrase “a plurality of” or “a number of” asused herein means two or more. The term “and/or” as used herein onlyrepresents a relationship between correlated objects, including threepossibilities. For example, “A and/or B” means A only, B only, or both Aand B. In addition, the symbol “/” as used herein represents an “or”relationship between the correlated objects preceding and succeeding thesymbol.

It is to be noted that the terms “first” and “second” in the descriptionand claims of the present disclosure and the above-mentioned figures areused to distinguish similar objects from each other, and are notnecessarily used to describe a specific sequence or order. It should beunderstood that the data used in this way can be interchanged asappropriate such that the embodiments of the present disclosure can beimplemented in orders other than those shown or described herein.

In addition, the terms “comprising” and “having” and any variantsthereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions. For example, aprocess, method, system, product or device that includes a series ofsteps or units is not necessarily limited to those steps or units thatare explicitly listed, and may include other steps or units that are notexplicitly listed or are inherent to the process, method, product, ordevice.

Embodiment 1

Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure provides a method for vehicleautomatic navigation control. The method can be applied to a vehicleautomatically navigating according to a predetermined navigation route.The entity for performing the method can be referred to as avehicle-mounted server (which can also be referred to as a firstvehicle-mounted server, which can be understood as a vehicle-mountedserver requesting to form a platoon). The vehicle can be a vehicle thatmoves alone or a leading vehicle in a platoon with one or more followingvehicles. The step flow of this method is shown in FIG. 1 , whichincludes the following steps.

At step 101, automatic navigation information is received.

In this step, the first vehicle-mounted server can receive at least onepiece of automatic navigation information.

One piece of automatic navigation information can be understood ascorresponding to a vehicle automatically navigating according to apredetermined navigation route. The vehicle can be a vehicle that movesalone or a leading vehicle in a platoon with one or more followingvehicles.

One piece of automatic navigation information can contain a navigationroute, a destination, a current location, and a vehicle-mounted serveridentifier of a corresponding vehicle. It can be appreciated that theautomatic navigation information can contain a navigation route, adestination, and a current location, and a vehicle-mounted serveridentifier corresponding to a vehicle automatically navigating accordingto a predetermined navigation route.

In this embodiment, the automatic navigation information may beautomatic navigation information reported by each vehicle automaticallynavigating according to a predetermined navigation route, receivedperiodically by a platooning control system and transmitted periodicallyto other vehicles automatically navigating according to their respectivepredetermined navigation routes.

At step 102, a matching vehicle-mounted server identifier is determined.

In this step, a vehicle-mounted server identifier of a vehicle to form aplatoon with a vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is locatedcan be determined based on automatic navigation informationcorresponding to the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated and the at least one piece of automatic navigation informationas received. An information overlapping degree between automaticnavigation information of the vehicle to form the platoon and theautomatic navigation information corresponding to the vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located meets a predefined requirement.

In this step, in order to determine the vehicle-mounted serveridentifier of the vehicle to form the platoon based on the automaticnavigation information corresponding to the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located and the at least one piece ofautomatic navigation information as received, the automatic navigationinformation having an information overlapping degree meeting thepredefined requirement can be determined first, and then thevehicle-mounted server identifier contained in the determined automaticnavigation information can be the vehicle-mounted server identifier ofthe vehicle to form the platoon.

If there are at least two pieces of automatic navigation informationthat are determined to have the information overlapping degree meetingthe predefined requirement, one of them can be selected in any arbitrarymanner, e.g., a random one can be selected or the one having the highestoverlapping degree of the navigation route can be selected.

In a possible implementation, the automatic navigation informationhaving the information overlapping degree meeting the predefinedrequirement can be determined by, but not limited to: determining, fromthe received at least one piece of automatic navigation information,automatic navigation information containing a navigation routeoverlapping the navigation route corresponding to the firstvehicle-mounted server and containing a current location within apredefined range, or automatic navigation information containing adestination identical to the destination corresponding to the firstvehicle-mounted server and containing a current location within apredefined range.

It can be appreciated that the automatic navigation informationcorresponding to a vehicle having the at least partially overlappingnavigation route and the current location within the predefined rangecan be determined. That is, the vehicle having the at least partiallyoverlapping navigation route and the current location within thepredefined range can be determined as the vehicle to form the platoon.

The predefined range for the current location can be set as required.

For example, in a possible implementation, the current location beingwithin the predefined range can be understood as the current locationbeing on the overlapping navigation route and the distance between thecurrent location and the end point of the overlapping navigation route(in this embodiment, the distance can be understood as a length of apath on which the vehicle can move) not being smaller than a firstthreshold, and on the path on which the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server receiving the automatic navigation information islocated moves, in the direction pointing to the end point of theoverlapping navigation route, the current location being before thelocation of the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server receiving theautomatic navigation information is located, and the distance betweenthe current location and the location of the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server receiving the automatic navigation information islocated not being greater than a second threshold.

Thus, before reaching the end point of the overlapping navigation route,the vehicle corresponding to the automatic navigation information canserve as a leading vehicle of the vehicle where the vehicle-mountedserver receiving the automatic navigation information is located, andform a platoon with the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted serverreceiving the automatic navigation information is located to move on theoverlapping navigation route.

In another example, in a possible implementation, the current locationbeing within the predefined range can be understood as the currentlocation being located before the starting point of the overlappingnavigation route, and the distance between the current location and thestarting point of the overlapping navigation route not being greaterthan a third threshold. Thus, it can form a platoon with the vehiclewhere the vehicle-mounted server receiving the automatic navigationinformation is located in a timely manner to move on the overlappingnavigation route.

In addition, automatic navigation information corresponding to a vehiclewith a same destination and a current location within a specified rangecan be determined, that is, the vehicle with the same destination andthe current location within the specified range can be determined as thevehicle to form the platoon.

The specified range for the current location can also be set asrequired.

For example, in a possible implementation, the current location beingwithin the specified range can be understood as the distance between thecurrent location and the location of the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server receiving the automatic navigation information islocated not being greater than a fourth threshold.

Thus, the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server receiving theautomatic navigation information is located can travel a short path toform the platoon with the vehicle corresponding to the automaticnavigation information in a timely manner, so as to avoid increase inthe fuel consumption of the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted serverreceiving the automatic navigation information is located.

At step 103, a platooning request is transmitted.

The platooning request is transmitted to a vehicle-mounted server (whichcan be referred to as a second vehicle-mounted server) corresponding tothe determined vehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle to forthe platoon, to request forming the platoon with the vehiclecorresponding to the vehicle-mounted server. The platooning request canbe understood as carrying an identifier corresponding to thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request, such thatthe vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request can feedback information to the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to theidentifier.

At step 104, the vehicle is controlled to move as a following vehicle.

After the platooning request is transmitted, if the vehicle-mountedserver receiving the platooning request agrees to form the platoon, itcan determine the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server transmittingthe platooning request is located as a following vehicle, and feed backlocation information and driving information based on thevehicle-mounted server identifier carried in the platooning request, inaccordance with a predetermined time length. The driving information maycontain, but not limited to, steering wheel angle information, throttlecontrol amount information, and brake control amount information.

Then in this step, a platooning response containing the locationinformation and the driving information can be received and inaccordance with the platooning response received each time, the vehiclewhere the first vehicle-mounted server is located can be controlled tomove as a following vehicle of the vehicle where the vehicle-mountedserver transmitting the location information and the driving informationis located.

This step can be understood as receiving the location information andthe driving information, and each time the location information and thedriving information are received, the location corresponding to thereceived location information can be used as the navigation targetlocation, and when the navigation target location is reached, thecorresponding vehicle is controlled to move in accordance with thereceived driving information.

It is to be noted that the first vehicle-mounted server may alsoperiodically report a distance between the vehicle where it is locatedand a vehicle in front of it in the platoon while controlling thevehicle where it is located to move as a following vehicle of thevehicle where the vehicle-mounted server transmitting the locationinformation and the driving information is located, such that theleading vehicle can adjust the speed of each vehicle in the platoon toavoid collision or increase in inter-vehicle distance.

Therefore, in this step, the location information can be received inaccordance with a specified time length, and each time the locationinformation is received, the distance between the location correspondingto the received location information and its corresponding location canbe determined, and the determined distance can be reported to thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the location information and thedriving information.

It can be understood that after the vehicle-mounted server receiving theplatooning request agrees to form the platoon, the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request is locatedcan be regarded as the last following vehicle, and the order informationof the following vehicles in the platoon can be updated.

If the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server agreeing to form theplatoon is located has no following vehicle before agreeing to form theplatoon, then the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server agreeing toform the platoon will be the vehicle for the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request is located toimmediately follow. The vehicle-mounted server agreeing to form theplatoon can transmit the location information of the vehicle where it islocated to the vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooningrequest in accordance with a specified time length.

If the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server agreeing to form theplatoon has one or more following vehicles before agreeing to form theplatoon, then before agreeing to form the platoon, the last followingvehicle of the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server agreeing to formthe platoon is located will be the vehicle for the vehicle-mountedserver transmitting the platooning request is located to immediatelyfollow. The vehicle-mounted server agreeing to form the platoon caninstruct the vehicle-mounted server on the last following vehicle of thevehicle where it is located before agreeing to form the platoon totransmit the location information of the vehicle where it is located tothe vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request inaccordance with a specified time length.

In this embodiment, the vehicle-mounted server agreeing to form theplatoon may transmit the identifier of the vehicle-mounted servertransmitting the platooning request to the vehicle-mounted server on thelast following vehicle of the vehicle where it is located beforeagreeing to form the platoon. The vehicle-mounted server can transmitthe location information of the vehicle where it is located thecorresponding vehicle-mounted server based on the receivedvehicle-mounted server identifier in accordance with a specified timelength.

Of course, if the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server agreeing toform the platoon has one or more following vehicles before agreeing toform the platoon, the vehicle-mounted server agreeing to form theplatoon can transmit the location information of the last followingvehicle of the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server agreeing to formthe platoon is located before agreeing to form the platoon to thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located in accordancewith a predetermined time length.

That is, in this embodiment, in a possible implementation, thevehicle-mounted server agreeing to form the platoon can obtain thelocation information of each following vehicle, and according to theorder of each following vehicle in the platoon, transmit the locationinformation of the vehicle in front of that following vehicle to thatfollowing vehicle in accordance with the predetermined time length.

In addition, it is to be noted that if the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request is a leadingvehicle in a platoon and has one or more following vehicles, eachfollowing vehicle in the platoon can move as a following vehicle of thevehicle where the vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooningrequest is located.

In another possible implementation, the following vehicle in the platooncan alternatively move as the following vehicle of the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server agreeing to form the platoon is located.

If it is determined that the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located has one or more following vehicles, in order to alloweach following vehicle in the platoon to move as a following vehicle ofthe vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server agreeing to form theplatoon is located, in a possible implementation, the platooning requestmay further carry the one or more vehicle-mounted server identifierscorresponding to the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle wherethe vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request islocated. That is, the platooning request may further carry the one ormore vehicle-mounted server identifiers corresponding to at least onefollowing vehicle. Here, the one or more vehicle-mounted serveridentifiers corresponding to the one or more following vehicles of thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located as carried inthe platooning request correspond to the order in which each followingvehicle of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is locatedfollows the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located.

The vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request may alsotransmit the location information and the driving information to thevehicle-mounted server corresponding to the vehicle-mounted serveridentifier corresponding to the at least one following vehicle inaccordance with a predetermined time length, such that the followingvehicle of the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server transmitting theplatooning request is located can follow the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request is located.

Of course, after the first vehicle-mounted server receives theplatooning response containing the location information and the drivinginformation, it can stop transmission of location information anddriving information to the one or more vehicle-mounted serverscorresponding to the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located, such that the one or morevehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the one or more followingvehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated control the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server is locatedto move as a following vehicle of the vehicle where the secondvehicle-mounted server is located in accordance with the receivedplatooning response containing the location information and the drivinginformation.

In addition, each following vehicle of the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request is locatedcan still report information on a distance to the vehicle in front ofthat following vehicle to the vehicle-mounted server transmitting theplatooning request.

In another possible implementation, the information on the distance tothe vehicle in front of each following vehicle may alternatively bereported to the vehicle-mounted server agreeing to form the platoon.

In order to allow each following vehicle of the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request is located toreport the information on the distance to the vehicle in front of thatcorresponding following vehicle to the vehicle-mounted server agreeingto form the platoon, in a possible implementation, the vehicle-mountedserver transmitting the platooning request can transmit thevehicle-mounted server identifier corresponding to the automaticnavigation information to that following vehicle, notifying thatfollowing vehicle to report the information on the distance to thevehicle-mounted server corresponding to the vehicle server identifier.

That is, after the first vehicle-mounted server receives the platooningresponse containing the location information and the drivinginformation, it can further transmit the vehicle-mounted serveridentifier of the second vehicle-mounted server to the one or morevehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the one or more followingvehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated, to instruct each of the one or more vehicle-mounted serverscorresponding to the one or more following vehicles to report a distanceto the second vehicle-mounted server. The distance is a distance,determined by the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to that followingvehicle each time it receives location information in accordance with aspecified time length, between a location corresponding to the receivedlocation information and its corresponding location. Here, the locationinformation received by the one or more vehicle-mounted serverscorresponding to the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located in accordance with thespecified time length is location information corresponding to a vehiclein front of that corresponding following vehicle.

The location information received by the one or more vehicle-mountedservers corresponding to one or more following vehicles of the vehiclewhere the first vehicle-mounted server is located in accordance with thespecified time length can be described as follows: the secondvehicle-mounted server instructs, in accordance with the order in whicheach of the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located follows the vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located (as the one or morevehicle-mounted server identifiers corresponding to the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located as carried in the platooning request correspond to the orderin which each following vehicle of the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located follows the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located, and the order in which each followingvehicle of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is locatedfollows the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is locatedcan be determined), the vehicle-mounted server on the vehicle in frontof that corresponding following vehicle to transmit the locationinformation to the vehicle-mounted server on that correspondingfollowing vehicle in accordance with the predetermined time length.

Alternatively, the location information received by the one or morevehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the one or more followingvehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated in accordance with the specified time length can be described asfollows: the second vehicle-mounted server transmits, in accordance withthe order in which each of the one or more following vehicles of thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located follows thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located, the locationinformation of the vehicle in front of that corresponding followingvehicle to the vehicle-mounted server on that corresponding followingvehicle in accordance with the predetermined time length.

In this embodiment, it is also to be noted that after thevehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request agrees to formthe platoon, and before the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted servertransmitting the platooning request is located, as the followingvehicle, feeds back the location information and the driving informationin accordance with the predetermined time length, it can be furtherdetermined that the distance between the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request is locatedand the last vehicle of the platoon it belongs to is not greater than athreshold, so as to ensure that the distance between vehicles in theplatoon is small and the air resistance and accordingly the fuelconsumption can be further reduced. At the same time, in order toprevent other vehicles from cutting in line and blocking movement of thevehicles, it can be determined that the speed difference is not greaterthan a threshold, so as to avoid collision or increase in theinter-vehicle distance.

The vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request maydetermine that the distance between the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request is locatedand the last vehicle in its platoon is not greater than a threshold, andthat the speed difference is not greater than a threshold in e.g., anyof the following schemes.

When the second vehicle-mounted server determines to agree to form theplatoon, it can determine whether the vehicle where the secondvehicle-mounted server is located has one or more following vehiclesbefore agreeing to form the platoon. If the vehicle where the secondvehicle-mounted server is located has no following vehicle beforeagreeing to form the platoon, it can transmit a prompt message to thefirst vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request inaccordance with a specific time length. The prompt message carrieslocation information and speed information of the vehicle where thesecond vehicle-mounted server is located. If the vehicle where thesecond vehicle-mounted server is located has one or more followingvehicles before agreeing to form the platoon, it can instruct avehicle-mounted server on the last one of the one or more followingvehicles of the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server islocated before agreeing to form the platoon to transmit a prompt messageto the first vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning requestin accordance with a specific time length. The prompt message carrieslocation information and speed information of the last followingvehicle.

In response to receiving a confirmation message transmitted from thefirst vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request,location information and driving information of the vehicle where thesecond vehicle-mounted server is located can be transmitted to the firstvehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request in accordancewith the predetermined time length.

Here, the confirmation message is transmitted by the firstvehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request aftercontrolling, each time the prompt message is received, the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located to approach a locationcorresponding to the location information carried in the prompt messageand controlling, when a distance between the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located and the location corresponding to thelocation information carried in the received prompt message is notgreater than a threshold, a difference between a speed of the vehiclewhere the first vehicle-mounted server is located and a speedcorresponding to the speed information carried in the prompt message notto be greater than a threshold.

It can be understood that the confirmation message can be transmitted bythe vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request aftercontrolling, each time the prompt message is received, the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located to approach the locationcorresponding to the location information carried in the prompt messageand controlling, when the location corresponding to the locationinformation carried in the received prompt message is located before thelocation corresponding to the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located on the route of the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located in the direction in which the vehiclewhere the first vehicle-mounted server is located is moving (that is, inthe direction pointing to the end point of the overlapping navigationroute when the determined automatic navigation information correspondsto partially overlapping navigation routes, or in the direction pointingto the destination in the case of the same destination) and the distancebetween the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is locatedand the location corresponding to the location information carried inthe received prompt message is not greater than the threshold, thedifference between the speed of the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located and the speed corresponding to thespeed information carried in the prompt message not to be greater thanthe threshold.

According, in this embodiment, the following step may be performed afterstep 103 and before step 104.

At step 104′, the vehicle is controlled to adjust the location and thespeed.

In this step, the vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooningrequest can receive a prompt message in accordance with a specific timelength, the prompt message carrying location information and speedinformation, and control, each time the prompt message is received, thevehicle where the vehicle-mounted server is located to approach alocation corresponding to the location information carried in the promptmessage, control, when a distance between the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server is located and the location corresponding to thelocation information carried in the received prompt message is notgreater than a threshold, a difference between a speed of the vehiclewhere the vehicle-mounted server is located and a speed corresponding tothe speed information carried in the prompt message not to be greaterthan a threshold, and transmit a confirmation message to the secondvehicle-mounted server.

Further, when the overlapping navigation route ends, or when thedestination is reached, the dynamic platooning of the vehicles (orplatoons) can be ended.

That is, in this embodiment, step 105 may be further included.

At step 105, a request to quit the platoon is transmitted.

If the navigation route corresponding to the vehicle-mounted serverreceiving the platooning request at least partially overlaps thenavigation route corresponding to the first vehicle-mounted server, thefirst vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request cantransmit, when determining that its corresponding location is aspecified location in an overlapping part of the navigation routes,e.g., the destination or some location close to the destination, arequest to quit the platoon to the vehicle-mounted server receiving theplatooning request, and determine a navigation target location based onits corresponding navigation route.

If the destination corresponding to the vehicle-mounted server receivingthe platooning request is the same as the destination corresponding tothe first vehicle-mounted server, the first vehicle-mounted servertransmitting the platooning request can transmit, when determining thatthe its corresponding location is its corresponding destination, arequest to quit the platoon to the vehicle-mounted server receiving theplatooning request.

Of course, if the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated was a leading vehicle previously, then after quitting theplatoon, the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is locatedcan move as the leading vehicle again.

In this case, when transmission of location information and drivinginformation to the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to each of theone or more following vehicles of the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located has been stopped, after the request toquit the platoon is transmitted, transmission of the locationinformation and the driving information to the vehicle-mounted servercorresponding to each of the one or more following vehicles of thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located can beresumed, such that the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to thatfollowing vehicle controls that following vehicle to move as a followingvehicle of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is locatedin accordance with the location information and the driving information.

When the vehicle-mounted server identifier of the second vehicle-mountedserver has been transmitted to the vehicle-mounted server correspondingto each of the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located, after the request to quit theplatoon is transmitted, the vehicle-mounted server identifier of thefirst vehicle-mounted server can be transmitted to the vehicle-mountedserver corresponding to each of the one or more following vehicles ofthe vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located, toinstruct each of the one or more vehicle-mounted servers correspondingto the one or more following vehicles to report a distance to the firstvehicle-mounted server. The distance is a distance, determined by thevehicle-mounted server corresponding to that following vehicle each timeit receives location information in accordance with a specified timelength, between a location corresponding to the received locationinformation and its corresponding location.

Embodiment 2

Embodiment 2 of the present disclosure provides a method for vehicleautomatic navigation control. The method can be applied to a vehicleautomatically navigating according to a predetermined navigation route.The entity for performing the method can be referred to as avehicle-mounted server (which can also be referred to as a secondvehicle-mounted server, which can be understood as a vehicle-mountedserver accepting a request to form a platoon). The vehicle can be avehicle that moves alone or a leading vehicle in a platoon with one ormore following vehicles. The step flow of this method is shown in FIG. 2, which includes the following steps.

At step 201, a platooning request is received.

In this step, the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to the selectedautomatic navigation information can receive the platooning request.

The platooning request is transmitted by a vehicle-mounted server (i.e.,a first vehicle-mounted server), after receiving at least one piece ofautomatic navigation information each containing a navigation route, adestination, a current location, and a vehicle-mounted server identifierof a corresponding vehicle, and determining, based on automaticnavigation information corresponding to a vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located and the at least one piece ofautomatic navigation information, a vehicle-mounted server identifier ofa vehicle to form a platoon with the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located, an information overlapping degreebetween automatic navigation information of the vehicle to form theplatoon and the automatic navigation information corresponding to thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located meeting apredefined requirement, to the second vehicle-mounted servercorresponding to the determined vehicle-mounted server identifier of thevehicle to form the platoon. The platooning request can carry avehicle-mounted server identifier corresponding to the firstvehicle-mounted server.

At step 202, it is determined whether to agree to form the platoon.

After receiving the platooning request, it can be determined in thisstep whether to agree to form the platoon.

In this embodiment, the determining condition can be set as needed, andit can be determined whether to agree to form the platoon according towhether the set determining condition is met.

In a possible implementation, the platooning request may carry aspecified parameter, and the operation of determining whether to agreeto form the platoon may include: determining whether the specifiedparameter meets a predetermined requirement.

The specified parameter may include, but not limited to, at least one ofthe following parameters: a vehicle type, a power system parameter, abraking system parameter, a positioning accuracy, a positioning delay, acontrol system accuracy, a control system delay, a lane-changinginstruction version, an acceleration/deceleration instruction version, aqueue management instruction version, a number of vehicles requesting tojoin the platoon, etc.

If it is determined to agree to form the platoon, the method can proceedwith step 203.

At step 203, location information and driving information aretransmitted periodically.

In this step, the location information and driving information of thevehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server is located can betransmitted to the vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooningrequest based on the vehicle-mounted server identifier carried in theplatooning request in accordance with a predetermined time length. Thedriving information may contain, but not limited to, steering wheelangle information, throttle control amount information, and brakecontrol amount information.

Of course, when the platooning request further carries one or morevehicle-mounted server identifiers respectively corresponding to the oneor more following vehicles of the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located, the one or more vehicle-mountedserver identifiers respectively corresponding to the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located corresponding to an order in which that following vehiclefollows the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located,in this step, the location information and the driving information ofthe vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server is located can alsobe transmitted to the one or more vehicle-mounted servers correspondingto the one or more vehicle-mounted server identifiers carried in theplatooning request, other than the vehicle-mounted server identifiercorresponding to the first vehicle-mounted server, in accordance withthe predetermined time length.

It is to be noted that, if it is determined in step 202 to agree to formthe platoon, the following step may also be included before step 203.

At step 202′, a prompt message is transmitted.

In this step, the prompt message can be transmitted to thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request in accordancewith a specific time length. The prompt message may carry locationinformation and speed information of the vehicle where the secondvehicle-mounted server is located.

Step 203 can be performed in response to receiving a confirmationmessage transmitted from the vehicle-mounted server transmitting theplatooning request.

Here, the confirmation message is transmitted by the vehicle-mountedserver transmitting the platooning request after controlling, each timethe prompt message is received, the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located to approach a location correspondingto the location information carried in the prompt message andcontrolling, when a distance between the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located and the location corresponding to thelocation information carried in the received prompt message is notgreater than a threshold, a difference between a speed of the vehiclewhere the first vehicle-mounted server is located and a speedcorresponding to the speed information carried in the prompt message notto be greater than a threshold.

Of course, the operation of transmitting the prompt message to thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request in accordancewith the specific time length can be understood as follows. It isdetermined whether the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted serveris located has one or more following vehicles before agreeing to formthe platoon, and if the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted serveris located has no following vehicle before agreeing to form the platoon,the prompt message is transmitted to the vehicle-mounted servertransmitting the platooning request in accordance with the specific timelength.

On the other hand, if it is determined that the vehicle where the secondvehicle-mounted server is located has one or more following vehiclebefore agreeing to form the platoon, the vehicle-mounted server on thelast following vehicle of the vehicle where the second vehicle-mountedserver is located before agreeing to form the platoon can be instructedto transmit the prompt message to the first vehicle-mounted servertransmitting the platooning request in accordance with the specific timelength. The prompt message carries the location information and thespeed information of the last following vehicle. Step 203 is performedwhen a confirmation message transmitted by the vehicle-mounted servertransmitting the platooning request is received.

It is to be noted that if it is determined in step 202 to agree to formthe platoon, then in step 203, the location information can also betransmitted periodically to the vehicle-mounted server transmitting theplatooning request. Alternatively, a vehicle-mounted server on anothercorresponding vehicle can be instructed to periodically transmit thelocation information of the vehicle where it is located to thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request, and receivedistance information reported by the vehicle-mounted server transmittingthe platooning request.

Here, it can be determined whether the vehicle where the secondvehicle-mounted server is located has one or more following vehiclesbefore agreeing to form the platoon.

If the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server is located has nofollowing vehicle before agreeing to form the platoon, the secondvehicle-mounted server can transmit location information of the vehiclewhere the second vehicle-mounted server is located to the firstvehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request in accordancewith a specified time length.

If the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server has one or morefollowing vehicles before agreeing to form the platoon, the secondvehicle-mounted server can instruct a vehicle-mounted server on the lastone of the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle where thesecond vehicle-mounted server is located before agreeing to form theplatoon to transmit location information of the last following vehicleto the first vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning requestin accordance with a specified time length, or the secondvehicle-mounted server can transmit the location information of the lastfollowing vehicle before agreeing to form the platoon to the vehiclewhere the first vehicle-mounted server is located in accordance with thepredetermined time length.

In addition, in step 203, the location information can be transmittedperiodically to the one or more vehicle-mounted servers respectively onthe one or more following vehicles of the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request is located.Alternatively, a vehicle-mounted server on another corresponding vehiclecan be instructed to transmit location information to the one or morevehicle-mounted servers on the one or more following vehicles of thevehicle where the vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooningrequest is located, and receive distance information reported by the oneor more vehicle-mounted servers respectively on the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted servertransmitting the platooning request is located.

That is, in accordance with the order in which each of the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located follows the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated, the vehicle-mounted server on the vehicle in front of thatfollowing vehicle can be instructed to transmit location information tothe vehicle-mounted server on that following vehicle in accordance withthe predetermined time length, or in accordance with the order in whicheach of the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located follows the vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located, location information of thevehicle in front of that following vehicle can be transmitted to thevehicle-mounted server on that following vehicle in accordance with thepredetermined time length.

Further, a distance reported by the vehicle-mounted server correspondingto the vehicle-mounted server identifier carried in the platooningrequest, other than the vehicle-mounted server identifier correspondingto the first vehicle-mounted server, can be received. The distance canbe a distance, determined by the vehicle-mounted server corresponding tothe following vehicle of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located each time it receives location information inaccordance with a specified time length, between a locationcorresponding to the received location information and its correspondinglocation.

Further, this embodiment may further include step 204.

At step 204, a request to quit the platoon is received.

In this step, the request to quit the platoon as transmitted from thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request can bereceived, and according to the request to quit the platoon, transmissionof location information and driving information to the vehicle-mountedserver transmitting the platooning request can be stopped.

The request to quit the platoon may carry the identifier of thevehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request, and thevehicle-mounted server receiving the request to quit the platoon maystop transmission of location information and driving information to thevehicle-mounted server corresponding to the vehicle-mounted serveridentifier carried therein.

Of course, if the location information and the driving information ofthe vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server is located has beentransmitted to one or more vehicle-mounted servers respectivelycorresponding to the one or more vehicle-mounted server identifierscarried in the platooning request, other than the vehicle-mounted serveridentifier corresponding to the first vehicle-mounted server, inaccordance with the predetermined time length, then in this step,transmission of the location information and driving information of thevehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server is located to the one ormore vehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the one or morevehicle-mounted server identifiers carried in the platooning request,other than the vehicle-mounted server identifier corresponding to thefirst vehicle-mounted server, can be stopped.

In a possible implementation, the request to quit the platoon mayfurther carry the one or more vehicle server identifiers respectivelycorresponding to the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle wherethe vehicle server transmitting the platooning request is located.

Of course, if it is desired that any following vehicle should continueto follow the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server transmitting therequest to quit the platoon is located, then the vehicle-mounted servertransmitting the request to quit the platoon can further retransmit thelocation information and driving information of the vehicle where it islocated to the vehicle-mounted server on the corresponding followingvehicle.

In addition, after the vehicle-mounted server transmitting theplatooning request transmits the request to quit the platoon, it mayalso stop reporting the information on the distance to the vehicle infront of it to the vehicle-mounted server agreeing to form the platoon.

The second vehicle-mounted server can stop receiving the distancereported by the first vehicle-mounted server corresponding to thevehicle-mounted server identifier carried in the platooning request.

If each following vehicle of the vehicle-mounted server transmitting theplatooning request also reports the information on the distance to thevehicle in front of it to the vehicle-mounted server agreeing to formthe platoon, then the following vehicle can also stop reporting theinformation on the distance to the vehicle in front of it to thevehicle-mounted server agreeing to form the platoon.

The second vehicle-mounted server can stop reception of the distancereported by the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to thevehicle-mounted server identifier carried in the platooning request,other than the vehicle-mounted server identifier corresponding to thefirst vehicle-mounted server.

In a possible implementation, the vehicle-mounted server transmittingthe request to quit the platoon can transmit the identifier of thevehicle-mounted server agreeing to form the platoon to eachcorresponding following vehicle, to notify each following vehicle tostop reporting the distance information to the vehicle-mounted servercorresponding to the vehicle server identifier.

Of course, if it is desired that any following vehicle should continueto follow the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server transmitting therequest to quit the platoon is located, then the vehicle-mounted servertransmitting the request to quit the platoon can also notify thevehicle-mounted server on the corresponding following vehicle toretransmit the distance information to the vehicle-mounted servertransmitting the request to quit the platoon.

In the following, the solutions provided in Embodiment 1 and Embodiment2 of the present disclosure will be explained with reference to aspecific example.

Embodiment 3

Embodiment 3 of the present disclosure provides a method for vehicleautomatic navigation control. It is assumed that the vehicle where thevehicle-mounted server receiving at least one piece of automaticnavigation information is located is a leading vehicle with onefollowing vehicle, and the platoon can be referred to as a rear platoon.

The vehicle-mounted server on the leading vehicle of the rear platoondetermines, from the received at least one piece of automatic navigationinformation, the automatic navigation information containing anavigation route at least partially overlapping its own correspondingnavigation route and a current location within a predefined range. Thevehicle where the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to the automaticnavigation information is located is also a leading vehicle with onefollowing vehicle, and the platoon can be referred to as a frontplatoon.

It is assumed that, in this case, on the overlapping navigation route(as shown by the straight line with arrow in FIG. 3 , with the arrowpointing to the direction in which the platoons move), the front platoonmoves in the front and the rear platoon moves behind the front platoon,individually. Then, the rear platoon can form a platoon with the frontplatoon to move together, and the method according to in this embodimentcan further include the following steps.

In a first step, the vehicle-mounted server on the leading vehicle ofthe rear platoon transmits a platooning request to the vehicle-mountedserver on the leading vehicle of the front platoon.

The platooning request may carry the vehicle-mounted server identifiercorresponding to the leading vehicle in the rear platoon, thevehicle-mounted server identifier corresponding to the following vehiclein the rear platoon, and specified parameters.

In a second step, the vehicle-mounted server on the leading vehicle ofthe front platoon determines whether to agree to form the platoon.

After receiving the platooning request, the vehicle-mounted server onthe leading vehicle of the front platoon determines whether each of thespecified parameters meets a corresponding predetermined requirement,and if so, determines to agree to the form the platoon.

In a third step, after the vehicle-mounted server on the leading vehicleof the front platoon determines to agree to form the platoon, it assignsan ID to each vehicle in the rear platoon, and determines the leadingvehicle in the rear platoon as the second following vehicle in theplatoon, and the following vehicle in the rear platoon as the thirdfollowing vehicle in the platoon.

In a fourth step, the vehicle-mounted server on the leading vehicle ofthe front platoon instructs the vehicle-mounted server on the lastfollowing vehicle before agreeing to form the platoon (that is, the lastfollowing vehicle in the front platoon) to transmit a prompt messageperiodically to the vehicle-mounted server on the leading vehicle of therear platoon.

In a fifth step, the vehicle-mounted server on the leading vehicle inthe rear platoon controls the vehicle where it is located to adjustlocation and speed according to the received prompt message until thedistance to the last following vehicle in the front platoon is small andthe speed is close to the speed of the last following vehicle in thefront platoon, and transmits a confirmation message to thevehicle-mounted server on the leading vehicle of the front platoon.

In a sixth step, after receiving the confirmation message, thevehicle-mounted server on the leading vehicle of the front platoontransmits the location information and driving information of thevehicle where it is located to the leading vehicle and the followingvehicle in the rear platoon periodically.

In a seventh step, the leading vehicle and the following vehicle in therear platoon move as following vehicles of the leading vehicle of thefront platoon in accordance with the received location information anddriving information.

According to the solutions provided in Embodiments 1˜3 of the presentdisclosure, it is possible to combine one platoon with another easilyand safely, such that the fuel saving effect of each platoon can beimproved, and the fuel consumption can be effectively reduced.

Correspondingly to the methods according to Embodiments 1˜3, thefollowing apparatus are provided.

Embodiment 4

Embodiment 4 of the present disclosure provides an apparatus for vehicleautomatic navigation control. The apparatus may have a structure asshown in FIG. 4 , including:

-   -   a receiving module 11 configured to receive at least one piece        of automatic navigation information each containing a navigation        route, a destination, a current location, and a vehicle-mounted        server identifier of a corresponding vehicle, and receive a        platooning response containing location information and driving        information, the location information and driving information        being fed back from a second vehicle-mounted server receiving a        platooning request based on a vehicle-mounted server identifier        carried in the platooning request in accordance with a        predetermined time length, the driving information containing        steering wheel angle information, throttle control amount        information, and brake control amount information;    -   a determining module 12 configured to determine, based on        automatic navigation information corresponding to a vehicle        where the first vehicle-mounted server is located and the at        least one piece of automatic navigation information, a        vehicle-mounted server identifier of a vehicle to form a platoon        with the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is        located, an information overlapping degree between automatic        navigation information of the vehicle to form the platoon and        the automatic navigation information corresponding to the        vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located        meeting a predefined requirement;    -   a transmitting module 13 configured to transmit the platooning        request to the second vehicle-mounted server corresponding to        the determined vehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle        to form the platoon, the platooning request carrying the        vehicle-mounted server identifier corresponding to the first        vehicle-mounted server; and    -   a control module 14 configured to control, in accordance with        the platooning response received each time, the vehicle where        the first vehicle-mounted server is located to move as a        following vehicle of the vehicle where the second        vehicle-mounted server is located.

Here, the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located hasone or more following vehicles, and/or the vehicle where the secondvehicle-mounted server is located has one or more following vehicles.

In a possible implementation, the determining module 12 can be furtherconfigured to, subsequent to determining the vehicle-mounted serveridentifier of the vehicle to form the platoon with the vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located, and prior to the transmittingmodule 13 transmitting the platooning request to the secondvehicle-mounted server corresponding to the determined vehicle-mountedserver identifier of the vehicle to form the platoon: determine whetherthe vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located has one ormore following vehicles.

When it is determined that the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located has one or more following vehicles, the transmittingmodule 13 can transmit the platooning request to the secondvehicle-mounted server corresponding to the determined vehicle-mountedserver identifier of the vehicle to form the platoon. The platooningrequest further carries one or more vehicle-mounted server identifiersrespectively corresponding to the one or more following vehicles of thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located. The one ormore vehicle-mounted server identifiers respectively corresponding tothe one or more following vehicles of the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located correspond to an order in which thatone or more following vehicles follow the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located.

After the receiving module 11 receives the platooning responsecontaining the location information and the driving information, thetransmitting module 13 can be further configured to: stop transmissionof location information and driving information to the one or morevehicle-mounted servers respectively corresponding to the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located, such that the one or more vehicle-mounted serversrespectively corresponding to the one or more following vehicles of thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located control thevehicle where the vehicle-mounted server is located to move as afollowing vehicle of the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted serveris located in accordance with the received platooning responsecontaining the location information and the driving information.

Further, in a possible implementation, after the receiving module 11receives the platooning response containing the location information andthe driving information, the transmitting module 13 can be furtherconfigured to: transmit the vehicle-mounted server identifier of thesecond vehicle-mounted server to the one or more vehicle-mounted serversrespectively corresponding to the one or more following vehicles of thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located, to instructeach of the one or more vehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the oneor more following vehicles to report a distance to the secondvehicle-mounted server. The distance is a distance, determined by thevehicle-mounted server corresponding to that following vehicle each timeit receives location information in accordance with a specified timelength, between a location corresponding to the received locationinformation and its corresponding location.

The location information received by the one or more vehicle-mountedservers corresponding to the one or more following vehicles of thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located in accordancewith the specified time length can be location information correspondingto a vehicle in front of that corresponding following vehicle.

In a possible implementation, the receiving module 11 can furtherconfigured to receive a prompt message in accordance with a specifictime length, the prompt message carrying location information and speedinformation.

The control module 14 can be further configured to control, each timethe prompt message is received, the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located to approach a location correspondingto the location information carried in the prompt message, and control,when a distance between the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located and the location corresponding to the locationinformation carried in the received prompt message is not greater than athreshold, a difference between a speed of the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located and a speed corresponding to the speedinformation carried in the prompt message not to be greater than athreshold.

The transmitting module 13 can be further configured to transmit aconfirmation message to the second vehicle-mounted server, when thedistance between the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated and the location corresponding to the location informationcarried in the received prompt message is not greater than thethreshold, and the difference between the speed of the vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located and the speed corresponding tothe speed information carried in the prompt message is not greater thanthe threshold.

In a possible implementation, the receiving module 11 can be furtherconfigured to receive the location information in accordance with aspecified time length.

The transmitting module 13 can be further configured to determine, eachtime the location information is received, a distance between a locationcorresponding to the received location information and its correspondinglocation, and report the determined distance to the secondvehicle-mounted server transmitting the location information and thedriving information.

In a possible implementation, when a navigation route corresponding tothe first vehicle-mounted server and a navigation route corresponding tothe second vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request atleast partially overlap, the transmitting module 13 can be furtherconfigured to transmit, when the first vehicle-mounted server determinesthat its corresponding location is a specified location in anoverlapping part of the navigation routes, a request to quit the platoonto the second vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request,and determine a navigation target location based on its correspondingnavigation route.

In a possible implementation, when a destination corresponding to thefirst vehicle-mounted server is same as a destination corresponding tothe second vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request, thetransmitting module 13 can be further configured to transmit, when thefirst vehicle-mounted server determines that its corresponding locationis its corresponding destination, a request to quit the platoon to thesecond vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request.

Further, in a possible implementation, after the transmitting module 13transmits the request to quit the platoon to the second vehicle-mountedserver receiving the platooning request, the transmitting module 13 canbe further configured to resume transmission of the location informationand the driving information to the one or more vehicle-mounted serversrespectively corresponding to the one or more following vehicles of thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located, such that thevehicle-mounted server corresponding to that following vehicle controlsthat following vehicle to move as a following vehicle of the vehiclewhere the first vehicle-mounted server is located in accordance with thelocation information and the driving information.

Further, in a possible implementation, after the transmitting module 13transmits the request to quit the platoon to the second vehicle-mountedserver receiving the platooning request, the transmitting module 13 canbe further configured to transmit the vehicle-mounted server identifierof the first vehicle-mounted server to the one or more vehicle-mountedservers corresponding to the one or more following vehicles of thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located, to instructeach of the one or more vehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the oneor more following vehicles to report a distance to the firstvehicle-mounted server. The distance is a distance, determined by thevehicle-mounted server corresponding to that following vehicle each timeit receives location information in accordance with a specified timelength, between a location corresponding to the received locationinformation and its corresponding location.

Embodiment 5

Embodiment 5 of the present disclosure provides an apparatus for vehicleautomatic navigation control. The apparatus may have a structure asshown in FIG. 5 , including:

-   -   a receiving module 21 configured to receive, by a second        vehicle-mounted server, a platooning request carrying a        vehicle-mounted server identifier corresponding to a first        vehicle-mounted server, the platooning request being transmitted        by the first vehicle-mounted server, after receiving at least        one piece of automatic navigation information each containing a        navigation route, a destination, a current location, and a        vehicle-mounted server identifier of a corresponding vehicle,        and determining, based on automatic navigation information        corresponding to a vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted        server is located and the at least one piece of automatic        navigation information, a vehicle-mounted server identifier of a        vehicle to form a platoon with the vehicle where the first        vehicle-mounted server is located, an information overlapping        degree between automatic navigation information of the vehicle        to form the platoon and the automatic navigation information        corresponding to the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted        server is located meeting a predefined requirement, to the        second vehicle-mounted server corresponding to the determined        vehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle to form the        platoon;    -   a determining module 22 configured to determine whether to agree        to form the platoon based on the platooning request; and    -   a transmitting module 23 configured to transmit, when it is        determined to agree to form the platoon, location information        and driving information of the vehicle where the second        vehicle-mounted server is located to the first vehicle-mounted        server transmitting the platooning request based on the        vehicle-mounted server identifier carried in the platooning        request in accordance with a predetermined time length, the        driving information containing steering wheel angle information,        throttle control amount information, and brake control amount        information.

The vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located has one ormore following vehicles, and/or the vehicle where the secondvehicle-mounted server is located has one or more following vehicles.

In a possible implementation, the transmitting module 23 can be furtherconfigured to transmit the location information and the drivinginformation of the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server islocated to one or more vehicle-mounted servers corresponding to one ormore vehicle-mounted server identifiers carried in the platooningrequest, other than the vehicle-mounted server identifier correspondingto the first vehicle-mounted server, in accordance with thepredetermined time length.

Further, in a possible implementation, the transmitting module 23 can befurther configured to instruct, in accordance with the order in whicheach of the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located follows the vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located, the vehicle-mounted server onthe vehicle in front of that corresponding following vehicle to transmitlocation information to the vehicle-mounted server on that correspondingfollowing vehicle in accordance with the predetermined time length, ortransmit, in accordance with the order in which each of the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located follows the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated, location information of the vehicle in front of thatcorresponding following vehicle to the vehicle-mounted server on thatcorresponding following vehicle in accordance with the predeterminedtime length.

The receiving module 21 can be further configured to receive a distancereported by the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to thevehicle-mounted server identifier carried in the platooning request,other than the vehicle-mounted server identifier corresponding to thefirst vehicle-mounted server. The distance is a distance, determined bythe vehicle-mounted server corresponding to that following vehicle ofthe vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located each timeit receives location information in accordance with a specified timelength, between a location corresponding to the received locationinformation and its corresponding location.

In a possible implementation, the transmitting module 23 can beconfigured to:

-   -   determine, when it is determined to agree to form the platoon,        whether the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server is        located has one or more following vehicles before agreeing to        form the platoon, and if the vehicle where the second        vehicle-mounted server is located has no following vehicle        before agreeing to form the platoon, transmit a prompt message        to the first vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning        request in accordance with a specific time length, the prompting        message carrying location information and speed information of        the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server is located,        or if the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server has        one or more following vehicles before agreeing to form the        platoon, instruct a vehicle-mounted server on the last one of        the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle where the        second vehicle-mounted server is located before agreeing to form        the platoon to transmit a prompt message to the first        vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request in        accordance with a specific time length, the prompt message        carrying location information and speed information of the last        following vehicle; and    -   transmit, in response to receiving a confirmation message        transmitted from the first vehicle-mounted server transmitting        the platooning request, location information and driving        information of the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted        server is located to the first vehicle-mounted server        transmitting the platooning request in accordance with the        predetermined time length.

The confirmation message is transmitted by the first vehicle-mountedserver transmitting the platooning request after controlling, each timethe prompt message is received, the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located to approach a location correspondingto the location information carried in the prompt message andcontrolling, when a distance between the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located and the location corresponding to thelocation information carried in the received prompt message is notgreater than a threshold, a difference between a speed of the vehiclewhere the first vehicle-mounted server is located and a speedcorresponding to the speed information carried in the prompt message notto be greater than a threshold.

In a possible implementation, the platooning request received by thereceiving module 21 can carry a specified parameters, and thedetermining module 22 can be configured to:

-   -   determine whether the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted        server is located has one or more following vehicles before        agreeing to form the platoon;    -   if the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server is        located has no following vehicle before agreeing to form the        platoon, transmit location information of the vehicle where the        second vehicle-mounted server is located to the first        vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request in        accordance with a specified time length; and    -   if the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server has one        or more following vehicles before agreeing to form the platoon,        instruct a vehicle-mounted server on the last one of the one or        more following vehicles of the vehicle where the second        vehicle-mounted server is located before agreeing to form the        platoon to transmit location information of the last following        vehicle to the first vehicle-mounted server transmitting the        platooning request in accordance with a specified time length,        or transmit the location information of the last following        vehicle before agreeing to form the platoon to the vehicle where        the first vehicle-mounted server is located in accordance with        the predetermined time length.

In a possible implementation, the receiving module 21 can be furtherconfigured to receive a request to quit the platoon as transmitted fromthe first vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request.

The transmitting module 23 can be further configured to stoptransmission of location information and driving information to thefirst vehicle-mounted server transmitting the platooning request inaccordance with the request to quit the platoon.

Further, in a possible implementation, the transmitting module 23 can befurther configured to stop transmission of the location information anddriving information of the vehicle where the second vehicle-mountedserver is located to the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to thevehicle-mounted server identifier carried in the platooning request,other than the vehicle-mounted server identifier corresponding to thefirst vehicle-mounted server.

Further, in a possible implementation, the receiving module 21 can befurther configured to stop reception of the distance reported by thevehicle-mounted server corresponding to the vehicle-mounted serveridentifier carried in the platooning request, other than thevehicle-mounted server identifier corresponding to the firstvehicle-mounted server.

Based on the same inventive concept, the embodiments of the presentdisclosure provide the following device and medium.

Embodiment 6

Embodiment 6 of the present disclosure provides a device for vehicleautomatic navigation control. The device may have a structure as shownin FIG. 6 , including a processor 31, a communication interface 32, amemory 33, and a communication bus 34. The processor 31, thecommunication interface 32, and the memory 33 communicate with eachother via the communication bus 34.

The memory 33 is configured to store a computer program.

The processor 31 is configured to implement, when executing the programstored on the memory, the method according to Embodiment 1 of thepresent disclosure.

Embodiment 7 of the present disclosure provides a device for vehicleautomatic navigation control. The device may also have a structure asshown in FIG. 6 , including a processor 31, a communication interface32, a memory 33, and a communication bus 34. The processor 31, thecommunication interface 32, and the memory 33 communicate with eachother via the communication bus 34.

The memory 33 is configured to store a computer program.

The processor 31 is configured to implement, when executing the programstored on the memory, the method according to Embodiment 2 of thepresent disclosure.

Optionally, the processor 31 may specifically include a CentralProcessing Unit (CPU), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit(ASIC), one or more integrated circuits for controlling programexecution, a hardware circuit developed by Field Programmable Gate Array(FPGA), or a baseband processor.

Optionally, the processor 31 may include at least one processing core.

Optionally, the memory 33 may include a Read-Only Memory (ROM), a RandomAccess Memory (RAM), and a disk memory. The memory 33 is configured tostore data required by the at least one processor 31 during operation.The number of memories 33 may be one or more.

Embodiment 8 of the present disclosure provides a non-volatile computerstorage medium storing an executable program which, when executed by aprocessor, implements the method according to Embodiment 1 of thepresent disclosure.

Embodiment 9 of the present disclosure provides a non-volatile computerstorage medium storing an executable program which, when executed by aprocessor, implements the method according to Embodiment 2 of thepresent disclosure.

In a specific implementation process, the computer storage medium mayinclude: a Universal Serial Bus (USB) Flash Drive, a mobile hard disk, aRead-Only Memory (ROM), a Random Access Memory (RAM), a magnetic disk,an optical disc, or other storage medium capable of storing programcodes.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, it can be appreciated thatthe disclosed devices and methods may be implemented in other ways. Forexample, the device embodiments described above are illustrative only.For example, the units or divisions thereof are only divisions based onlogical functions. There may be other divisions in actualimplementations. For example, more than one unit or component may becombined or integrated into another system, or some features can beignored or omitted. In addition, the mutual coupling or direct couplingor communicative connection as shown or discussed may be indirectcoupling or communicative connection between devices or units via someinterfaces which may be electrical or in any other forms.

The functional units in the embodiments of the present disclosure may beintegrated into one processing unit, or alternatively be separatephysical modules.

When the integrated unit is implemented in the form of a softwarefunctional unit and sold or used as a standalone product, it can bestored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on thisunderstanding, all or part of the technical solutions according to theembodiments of the present disclosure can be embodied in the form of asoftware product. The computer software product may be stored in astorage medium and contain instructions to enable a computer device,such as a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc., or aprocessor to perform all or part of the steps of the method described ineach of the embodiments of the present disclosure. The storage mediummay include a Universal Serial Bus Flash Drive, a mobile hard disk, aROM, a RAM, a magnetic disk, an optical disc, or any other mediumcapable of storing program codes.

It can be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the embodimentsof the present disclosure can be implemented as a method, a system or acomputer program product. The present disclosure may include purehardware embodiments, pure software embodiments and any combinationthereof. Also, the present disclosure may include a computer programproduct implemented on one or more computer readable storage mediums(including, but not limited to, magnetic disk storage, CD-ROM, andoptical storage) containing computer readable program codes.

The present disclosure has been described with reference to theflowcharts and/or block diagrams of the method, device (system) andcomputer program product according to the embodiments of the presentdisclosure. It can be appreciated that each process and/or block in theflowcharts and/or block diagrams, or any combination thereof, can beimplemented by computer program instructions. Such computer programinstructions can be provided to a general computer, a dedicatedcomputer, an embedded processor or a processor of any other programmabledata processing device to constitute a machine, such that theinstructions executed by a processor of a computer or any otherprogrammable data processing device can constitute means forimplementing the functions specified by one or more processes in theflowcharts and/or one or more blocks in the block diagrams.

These computer program instructions can also be stored in a computerreadable memory that can direct a computer or any other programmabledata processing device to operate in a particular way. Thus, theinstructions stored in the computer readable memory constitute amanufacture including instruction means for implementing the functionsspecified by one or more processes in the flowcharts and/or one or moreblocks in the block diagrams.

These computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computeror any other programmable data processing device, such that the computeror the programmable data processing device can perform a series ofoperations/steps to achieve a computer-implemented process. In this way,the instructions executed on the computer or the programmable dataprocessing device can provide steps for implementing the functionsspecified by one or more processes in the flowcharts and/or one or moreblocks in the block diagrams.

While the preferred embodiments of the present disclosure have describedabove, further alternatives and modifications can be made to theseembodiments by those skilled in the art in light of the basic inventiveconcept of the present disclosure. The claims as attached are intendedto cover the preferred embodiments and all these alternatives andmodifications that fall within the scope of the present disclosure.

Obviously, various modifications and variants can be made to the presentdisclosure by those skilled in the art without departing from the spiritand scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, these modifications andvariants are to be encompassed by the present disclosure if they fallwithin the scope of the present disclosure as defined by the claims andtheir equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for vehicle automatic navigationcontrol, comprising: receiving, by a first vehicle-mounted server, atleast one piece of automatic navigation information each containing anavigation route, a destination, a current location, and avehicle-mounted server identifier of a corresponding vehicle;determining, based on automatic navigation information corresponding toa vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located and the atleast one piece of automatic navigation information, a firstvehicle-mounted server identifier of a vehicle to form a platoon withthe vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located, aninformation overlapping degree between automatic navigation informationof the vehicle to form the platoon and the automatic navigationinformation corresponding to the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located meeting a predefined requirement; transmitting aplatooning request to a second vehicle-mounted server corresponding tothe determined first vehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle toform the platoon, the platooning request carrying the firstvehicle-mounted server identifier corresponding to the firstvehicle-mounted server; receiving a platooning response containinglocation information and driving information, the location informationand the driving information being fed back from the secondvehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request based on thefirst vehicle-mounted server identifier carried in the platooningrequest in accordance with a predetermined time length, the drivinginformation containing steering wheel angle information, throttlecontrol amount information, and brake control amount information; andcontrolling, in accordance with the platooning response received eachtime, the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located tomove as a following vehicle of the vehicle where the secondvehicle-mounted server is located, wherein the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located has one or more following vehicles, orthe vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server is located has oneor more following vehicles, wherein the navigation route correspondingto the first vehicle-mounted server and a navigation route correspondingto the second vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning requesthave an overlapping navigation route, wherein the current location islocated before a starting point of the overlapping navigation route, andwherein a distance between the current location and the starting pointof the overlapping navigation route is not greater than a firstthreshold.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising, subsequent todetermining the first vehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicleto form the platoon with the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located, and prior to transmitting the platooning request tothe second vehicle-mounted server corresponding to the determined firstvehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle to form the platoon:determining whether the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located has the one or more following vehicles; and transmitting,when it is determined that the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located has the one or more following vehicles, the platooningrequest to the second vehicle-mounted server corresponding to thedetermined first vehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle toform the platoon, the platooning request further carrying one or morevehicle-mounted server identifiers corresponding to the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located, the one or more vehicle-mounted server identifierscorresponding to the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located corresponding to an order inwhich the one or more following vehicles follow the vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located, wherein the method furthercomprises, subsequent to receiving the platooning response containingthe location information and the driving information: stoppingtransmission of the location information and the driving information toone or more vehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located, such that the one or more vehicle-mounted serverscorresponding to the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located control the vehicle wherethe vehicle-mounted server is located to move as the following vehicleof the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server is located inaccordance with the received platooning response containing the locationinformation and the driving information.
 3. The method of claim 2,further comprising, subsequent to receiving the platooning responsecontaining the location information and the driving information:transmitting a second vehicle-mounted server identifier of the secondvehicle-mounted server to the one or more vehicle-mounted serverscorresponding to the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located, to instruct each of the oneor more vehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the one or morefollowing vehicles to report a distance to the second vehicle-mountedserver, the distance being a distance, determined by the vehicle-mountedserver corresponding to that following vehicle each time it receiveslocation information in accordance with a specified time length, betweena location corresponding to the received location information and itscorresponding location, wherein the location information received by thevehicle-mounted server corresponding to one of the one or more followingvehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated in accordance with the specified time length is locationinformation corresponding to a vehicle in front of the correspondingfollowing vehicle.
 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising,subsequent to transmitting the platooning request to the secondvehicle-mounted server corresponding to the determined firstvehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle to form the platoon,and prior to receiving the platooning response containing the locationinformation and the driving information: receiving, by the firstvehicle-mounted server, a prompt message in accordance with a specifictime length, the prompt message carrying the location information andspeed information; and controlling, each time the prompt message isreceived, the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is locatedto approach a location corresponding to the location information carriedin the prompt message, controlling, when a distance between the vehiclewhere the first vehicle-mounted server is located and the locationcorresponding to the location information carried in the received promptmessage is not greater than a second threshold, a difference between aspeed of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is locatedand a speed corresponding to the speed information carried in the promptmessage not to be greater than a third threshold, and transmitting aconfirmation message to the second vehicle-mounted server.
 5. The methodof claim 1, further comprising: transmitting, when the firstvehicle-mounted server determines that its corresponding location is aspecified location in the overlapping navigation route, a request toquit the platoon to the second vehicle-mounted server receiving theplatooning request, and determining a navigation target location basedon its corresponding navigation route.
 6. The method of claim 5, furthercomprising, subsequent to transmitting the request to quit the platoonto the second vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request,when transmission of the location information and the drivinginformation to the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to each of theone or more following vehicles of the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located has been stopped: resumingtransmission of the location information and the driving information toone or more vehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located, such that the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to thatfollowing vehicle controls that following vehicle to move as a followingvehicle of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is locatedin accordance with the location information and the driving information.7. The method of claim 5, further comprising, subsequent to transmittingthe request to quit the platoon to the second vehicle-mounted serverreceiving the platooning request, when a second vehicle-mounted serveridentifier of the second vehicle-mounted server has been transmitted toone or more vehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located: transmitting the first vehicle-mounted server identifier ofthe first vehicle-mounted server to the one or more vehicle-mountedservers corresponding to the one or more following vehicles of thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located, to instructthe vehicle-mounted server corresponding to that following vehicle toreport a distance to the first vehicle-mounted server, the distancebeing a distance, determined by the vehicle-mounted server correspondingto that following vehicle each time it receives location information inaccordance with a specified time length, between a locationcorresponding to the received location information and its correspondinglocation.
 8. The method of claim 1, further comprising, when thedestination corresponding to the first vehicle-mounted server is same asa destination corresponding to the second vehicle-mounted serverreceiving the platooning request: transmitting, when the firstvehicle-mounted server determines that its corresponding location is itscorresponding destination, a request to quit the platoon to the secondvehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request.
 9. Anon-transitory computer storage medium, storing an executable programwhich, when executed by a processor, implements a method for vehicleautomatic navigation control, the method comprising: receiving, by afirst vehicle-mounted server, at least one piece of automatic navigationinformation each containing a navigation route, a destination, a currentlocation, and a vehicle-mounted server identifier of a correspondingvehicle; determining, based on automatic navigation informationcorresponding to a vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated and the at least one piece of automatic navigation information,a first vehicle-mounted server identifier of a vehicle to form a platoonwith the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located, aninformation overlapping degree between automatic navigation informationof the vehicle to form the platoon and the automatic navigationinformation corresponding to the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located meeting a predefined requirement; transmitting aplatooning request to a second vehicle-mounted server corresponding tothe determined first vehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle toform the platoon, the platooning request carrying the firstvehicle-mounted server identifier corresponding to the firstvehicle-mounted server; receiving a platooning response containinglocation information and driving information, the location informationand the driving information being fed back from the secondvehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request based on thefirst vehicle-mounted server identifier carried in the platooningrequest in accordance with a predetermined time length, the drivinginformation containing steering wheel angle information, throttlecontrol amount information, and brake control amount information; andcontrolling, in accordance with the platooning response received eachtime, the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located tomove as a following vehicle of the vehicle where the secondvehicle-mounted server is located, wherein the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located has one or more following vehicles, orthe vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server is located has oneor more following vehicles, wherein the navigation route correspondingto the first vehicle-mounted server and a navigation route correspondingto the second vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning requesthave an overlapping navigation route, wherein the current location islocated before a starting point of the overlapping navigation route, andwherein a distance between the current location and the starting pointof the overlapping navigation route is not greater than a firstthreshold.
 10. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 9,wherein the method further comprises, subsequent to determining thefirst vehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle to form theplatoon with the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated, and prior to transmitting the platooning request to the secondvehicle-mounted server corresponding to the determined firstvehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle to form the platoon:determining whether the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located has the one or more following vehicles; and transmitting,when it is determined that the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located has the one or more following vehicles, the platooningrequest to the second vehicle-mounted server corresponding to thedetermined first vehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle toform the platoon, the platooning request further carrying one or morevehicle-mounted server identifiers corresponding to the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located, the one or more vehicle-mounted server identifierscorresponding to the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located corresponding to an order inwhich the one or more following vehicles follow the vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located, wherein the method furthercomprises, subsequent to receiving the platooning response containingthe location information and the driving information: stoppingtransmission of the location information and the driving information toone or more vehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located, such that the one or more vehicle-mounted serverscorresponding to the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located control the vehicle wherethe vehicle-mounted server is located to move as the following vehicleof the vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server is located inaccordance with the received platooning response containing the locationinformation and the driving information.
 11. The non-transitory computerstorage medium of claim 10, wherein the method further comprises,subsequent to receiving the platooning response containing the locationinformation and the driving information: transmitting a secondvehicle-mounted server identifier of the second vehicle-mounted serverto the one or more vehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the one ormore following vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located, to instruct each of the one or more vehicle-mountedservers corresponding to the one or more following vehicles to report adistance to the second vehicle-mounted server, the distance being adistance, determined by the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to thatfollowing vehicle each time it receives location information inaccordance with a specified time length, between a locationcorresponding to the received location information and its correspondinglocation, wherein the location information received by thevehicle-mounted server corresponding to one of the one or more followingvehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated in accordance with the specified time length is locationinformation corresponding to a vehicle in front of the correspondingfollowing vehicle.
 12. The non-transitory computer storage medium ofclaim 9, wherein the method further comprises, subsequent totransmitting the platooning request to the second vehicle-mounted servercorresponding to the determined first vehicle-mounted server identifierof the vehicle to form the platoon, and prior to receiving theplatooning response containing the location information and the drivinginformation: receiving, by the first vehicle-mounted server, a promptmessage in accordance with a specific time length, the prompt messagecarrying the location information and speed information; andcontrolling, each time the prompt message is received, the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located to approach a locationcorresponding to the location information carried in the prompt message,controlling, when a distance between the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located and the location corresponding to thelocation information carried in the received prompt message is notgreater than a second threshold, a difference between a speed of thevehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located and a speedcorresponding to the speed information carried in the prompt message notto be greater than a third threshold, and transmitting a confirmationmessage to the second vehicle-mounted server.
 13. The non-transitorycomputer storage medium of claim 9, wherein the method furthercomprises: transmitting, when the first vehicle-mounted serverdetermines that its corresponding location is a specified location inthe overlapping navigation route, a request to quit the platoon to thesecond vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request, anddetermining a navigation target location based on its correspondingnavigation route.
 14. A device for vehicle automatic navigation control,comprising a processor, a communication interface, a memory, and acommunication bus, wherein the processor, the communication interface,and the memory communicate with each other via the communication bus,the memory is configured to store a computer program, and the processoris configured to implement, when executing the program stored on thememory, a method, wherein the method comprises: receiving, by a firstvehicle-mounted server, at least one piece of automatic navigationinformation each containing a navigation route, a destination, a currentlocation, and a vehicle-mounted server identifier of a correspondingvehicle; determining, based on automatic navigation informationcorresponding to a vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated and the at least one piece of automatic navigation information,a first vehicle-mounted server identifier of a vehicle to form a platoonwith the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located, aninformation overlapping degree between automatic navigation informationof the vehicle to form the platoon and the automatic navigationinformation corresponding to the vehicle where the first vehicle-mountedserver is located meeting a predefined requirement; transmitting aplatooning request to a second vehicle-mounted server corresponding tothe determined first vehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle toform the platoon, the platooning request carrying the firstvehicle-mounted server identifier corresponding to the firstvehicle-mounted server; receiving a platooning response containinglocation information and driving information, the location informationand the driving information being fed back from the secondvehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request based on thefirst vehicle-mounted server identifier carried in the platooningrequest in accordance with a predetermined time length, the drivinginformation containing steering wheel angle information, throttlecontrol amount information, and brake control amount information; andcontrolling, in accordance with the platooning response received eachtime, the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is located tomove as a following vehicle of the vehicle where the secondvehicle-mounted server is located, wherein the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located has one or more following vehicles, orthe vehicle where the second vehicle-mounted server is located has oneor more following vehicles, wherein the navigation route correspondingto the first vehicle-mounted server and a navigation route correspondingto the second vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning requesthave an overlapping navigation route, wherein the current location islocated before a starting point of the overlapping navigation route, andwherein a distance between the current location and the starting pointof the overlapping navigation route is not greater than a firstthreshold.
 15. The device of claim 14, wherein the method furthercomprises, subsequent to determining the first vehicle-mounted serveridentifier of the vehicle to form the platoon with the vehicle where thefirst vehicle-mounted server is located, and prior to transmitting theplatooning request to the second vehicle-mounted server corresponding tothe determined first vehicle-mounted server identifier of the vehicle toform the platoon: determining whether the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located has the one or more followingvehicles; and transmitting, when it is determined that the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located has the one or morefollowing vehicles, the platooning request to the second vehicle-mountedserver corresponding to the determined first vehicle-mounted serveridentifier of the vehicle to form the platoon, the platooning requestfurther carrying one or more vehicle-mounted server identifierscorresponding to the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located, the one or morevehicle-mounted server identifiers corresponding to the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located corresponding to an order in which the one or more followingvehicles follow the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated, wherein the method further comprises, subsequent to receivingthe platooning response containing the location information and thedriving information: stopping transmission of the location informationand the driving information to one or more vehicle-mounted serverscorresponding to the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located, such that the one or morevehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the one or more followingvehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server islocated control the vehicle where the vehicle-mounted server is locatedto move as the following vehicle of the vehicle where the secondvehicle-mounted server is located in accordance with the receivedplatooning response containing the location information and the drivinginformation.
 16. The device of claim 14, wherein the method furthercomprises, when the destination corresponding to the firstvehicle-mounted server is same as a destination corresponding to thesecond vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request:transmitting, when the first vehicle-mounted server determines that itscorresponding location is its corresponding destination, a request toquit the platoon to the second vehicle-mounted server receiving theplatooning request.
 17. The device of claim 16, wherein the methodfurther comprises, subsequent to transmitting the request to quit theplatoon to the second vehicle-mounted server receiving the platooningrequest, when transmission of the location information and the drivinginformation to the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to each of theone or more following vehicles of the vehicle where the firstvehicle-mounted server is located has been stopped: resumingtransmission of the location information and the driving information toone or more vehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located, such that the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to thatfollowing vehicle controls that following vehicle to move as a followingvehicle of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted server is locatedin accordance with the location information and the driving information.18. The device of claim 16, wherein the method further comprises,subsequent to transmitting the request to quit the platoon to the secondvehicle-mounted server receiving the platooning request, when a secondvehicle-mounted server identifier of the second vehicle-mounted serverhas been transmitted to one or more vehicle-mounted serverscorresponding to the one or more following vehicles of the vehicle wherethe first vehicle-mounted server is located: transmitting the firstvehicle-mounted server identifier of the first vehicle-mounted server tothe one or more vehicle-mounted servers corresponding to the one or morefollowing vehicles of the vehicle where the first vehicle-mounted serveris located, to instruct the vehicle-mounted server corresponding to thatfollowing vehicle to report a distance to the first vehicle-mountedserver, the distance being a distance, determined by the vehicle-mountedserver corresponding to that following vehicle each time it receiveslocation information in accordance with a specified time length, betweena location corresponding to the received location information and itscorresponding location.